Office



(No Model.)

W. R. DUTEMPLE.

GYGLOMETER. 1

No. 362,883. Patented May 10, 1887.

IN VENTEIR,

fl mum a nam w.

UNITED STATES \VILLIAM R. DUTEMPLE, OF PRQYIDENGE, RHODE ISLAND.

CYCLOMETER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 362,883, dated May 10, 1887.

Application tiled February 15, 1887. Serial Noflilffi'i. (No model.)

To all whom/1'25 may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM R. DUTEMPLE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Providence, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gyclomet'ers;

and I do hereby declare the following to be a.

full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part The object of my prescntinveution is to pro duce a cyclometer more particularly adapted to be secured to a bicycle-wheel, whereby the latter in its revolutions,'whether slow or rapid,

causes the registering-train of the cyclometerto accurately indicate the distance traveled.

Heretoforc the construction of cyclometers has been such that they are more or less inaccurate in their readings, another disadvantage being that dust, water, &c., enter the interior of, the casing, thereby seriously affecting the mechanism and rendering it unreliable in its action, if not wholly inoperative. Again, cyclomctcrs secured to the spokes of a bicycle wheel havebeen soconstructed that a tangentially-arranged sliding weight is made to engage a ratchet-wheel to actuate the registering mechanism. It is obvious in this latter arrangement that the bicycle, when running at a rapid rate, produces a centrifugal or tangential force which opposes the normal action of the weight, thereby, as stated, rendering its readings or indications unreliable.

It is well known that the hub of a bicyclewheel is usually not less thaufive inches in diameter. In view of this fact, and to obtain the best results, it is apparent that a gravityacting cyclomcter, when attached to a spoke of the wheel, as above indicated, should be secured as closeto the-center of thewheel as possible, a distinguishing feature of my invention herewith being that the fulcrum or pivot on which the rcgistcrin g mechanism is mounted is located at the lower edge of the shell or casing and immediately adjacent to .thehub of the wheel. By means of this arrangement the opposing force above referred to is reduced to a minimum; another feature of the invention being that the registering mechanism itself, ecccntrically mounted on a pivot secured to the normally stationary case, by', means of its weight serves to produce the power necessary to intermittently operate the cyclometen;

In the accompanying sheet ofdrawings, illustrating my improvements, Figure 1 represents the cyclomcter (in reduced scale) secured to the inner right side of a bicycle-wheel, contiguous to the hub thereof, the main shaft or axle being'sectionally shown. Fig. 2 is an enlarged view in elevation of the Cyclometerdetached. The succeeding figures are drawn somewhat enlarged in order to more clearly exhibit the construction and arrangement of the several parts. Fig. 3' is a front view. Fig.

4 is a similar View having the cap and dial removed. Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view takenou line as m of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 1s a front view having the cap, dial, and; numbered disks removed, and showing the mechanism.

vibrated to the left limit, said movement, in connection with the stationary spring-pawl, thereby turning theratchet-wheel one tooth in the arrow direction. Fig. 7 is a similar view of the cyclomcte'r, showing the relation of the parts to the casing and corresponding to the latter half-revolution of the bicyclewheel, the opposite catch or check-pawl rctanr ing the ratchet-wheel in position, while the free end of the operating-pawl slips over the wheel to engage the next tooth. Fig. Sis a side view of the inner or pivoted case in which is mounted the gearing, &c.; and Fi 9 is a detached view showingthe rear side of the intermittentlyoperating wheels which are mounted upon the disk-carrying spindles.

The following is a more detailed description of the invention, including the manner of its operation.

A, referring again to\the drawings, desighates my improved self-registering cyclome'ter as a whole, and as adapted to be secured to the spokes of a bicycle-wheel.

B indicates the shell or casing in which the mechanism is mounted, said casing, as drawn,

being cylindrical and made of sheet metal, the bottom and sides or barrel being. without external openings. The front, however, is open and adapted to receive the. cover or cap 0, the two parts being screwed together. To the rear of the casing-is secured a short extension, 0, which is adapted to receive a spoke, s, of the bicycle, a plate, 0', and clampingscrews 0", Fig. 5, serving to retain the cyclometer in position upon the wheel. A glass disk, G, is fitted and adapted to be hermetically sealed in an opening formed in the cap 0.

IQ indicates a cylinder mounted-within the casing 13. e is a stud or pivot secured to the lower side or edge-of the case B, and on which the cylinder Dis mounted to vibrate, as clearly shown. The length of the cylinder is about equal to the inner width of the casingB, the front D of the cylinder being provided with a graduated face or dial. The two ends of the cylinder D are adapted to receive the arbors or spindles of a, gear-train and registering mechanism, the same being mounted so as to be nearly frictionless. To the lower side of the cylinder, near the pivot e, a spindle, .m, is mounted to revolve, a ratchetwheel, m, being secured to said spindle. A check or retaming-pawl, n, is mounted-at the base of'the cylinder to engage the ratchet-wheel. it indicates an oppositely-arranged springpawl secured to the casing at a, for the purpose of actuating the ratchet-wheel, the latter pawl passingv through an opening. a, formed in the adjacent side and base of the cylinder. a indicates the center spindle, on which is secured, exterior of the dial, the index-hand h. strain of suitably-proportioned reducinggearing, 'i, transmits the intermittent rotary movement of the ratchet-wheel to the said center spindle, one revolution of the latter representing a mile or other unit of distance, as may be desired.

Upon the center spindle, a, is secured ashlgle-tooth wheel, b, which engages a ten-tooth (units) wheel, I), mounted on a spindle, the latter also carrying a single-tooth wheel ongaging'a ten-tooth (tens) wheel, b mounted on a sp ndle, which latter in turn carriesn similarsingle-toothwheel engaging a ten-tooth (hundreds) wheel, b mounted on a spindle at the left of the center. Immediately below the face of the dial D are secured on their re spective spindles the three disks a a a", Fig.

'4, numbered and arranged as clearly shown.

5 An elongated opening, 0, is formcdin the dial above the center spindle, through which the N tained,

readings of the cyclometer may be ascer- In order to deaden the slight noise produced 6o: by the click of the pawls, &e'., I preferably line the interior of the ease with leather, felt, or other suitable material, as at f, similar ma- -terial, f, being secured in oppositely-located pockets, 1), formed in the sides of the vibratingcylinderadjaeent to the touching-points thereof with the case. A washer, w, secured to theupper side of thecase, extends down through a narrow opening formed in the cylinder, to pre vent cndwisc' movement oi the latter.

In bicycles as usually constructed the hub of the wheel is of considerable length, terminating on each end in an enlarged flange, into which thewire spokes s are secured, said spokes extending therefrom outwardly in an angular direction and unite with the rim of the wheel, the angle of the spokes being indicated by the dotted lines,Fig.' 5.

' The cyclometcr is secured in a substantially vertical plane or position to the inner righthand side of the bicycle wheel, close up to the hub thereof, as shown in Fig. 1. Now, assuming the bicyclewhcel to be revolving on its axis in the forward or arrow direction, Fig. 1, and having the cyclometer A mounted thereon, the operation of the device is as follows: Just prior to passing the upper center the cylinder D, containing the mechanism, stands in the position shown in Fig. 7, the check-pawl a preventing the gear-train from working rearwardly. Now, the forward axial movement of the bicycle-wheel carries the case past the vertical center and downwardly, at the instant, however, that the pivoted cylinder 1) passesits center of gravity. The weight thereof, together with its attached mechanism, iin-' mediately causes it to vibrate on the pivot e, to engage the opposite sideof the case, and in advance of the speed of the revolving bicyclewheel, the corresponding position being shown in Fig. 6. During this latter angular movement the ratchet-wheel is forced rearwardly see arrow) one tooth by reason of its engage ment with the end of the stationary springpawl n. as the blcyclewheel continues to turn to complete the first half of its rovohr tion, the case and c linder I) then travel in unison until the cyl ruler is (for the instant) nearly vertical on thelowcr center. The blcyelewhoel,--still turning, carries the case in an upward direction, at which time the case (for the time being) travels ihsier than the cyl lndor, the latter at the same time being re ativcl y !tilili0llill,]-'tiiiiii is to say, incense moves away from the cylinder until the rcurside oi the former engages the corresponding side of the latter, when the two parts again travel in unison, During this latter movement or the parts thoraichet-wheel and check-pawl travel together against the slight tension of the pawl n thereby carrying the ratchet from the stationary pawl and permitting the point thereof to engage a new tooth, the corresponding position of the cylinder being substantially as represented in 'Fig. 7. The case and cylinder now travel in unison with the bicycle-wheel, as just stated, thus completing a revolution.

It will be noticed that during the complete revolution of the bicycle-wheel the ratchetwheel m, secured to the axis in, has been vibrated only one tooth. It is evident, therefore, that if the periphery of the bicycles heel be so proportioned as to require, say, just four hundred and. eighty revolutions thereof to equal one milefmhichwould be the case with a forty-two-ineh-diameter wheel,) then vthe spring-pawl n will have engaged during the time a corresponding number (four hun- 5 dred and eighty) of teeth, the number of teeth in the ratchet-wheelm and the reducingtrain ibeing such as toproduce just one revolution of the center spindle, a, during four hundred and eighty vibrations of the cylinder [0 D, the hand h thereof in its revolution indicating'at the same time one mile, said movement, in connection withthe one-tooth'wheel 'b, 82.0., also turning the unit-disk-carrying spindle one-tenth of' a revolution.

The construction and arrangement of the one-tooth wheels b and the ten-tooth wheels I) b b to produce an intermittent registering device are old, the same being substantially the equivalent of thefwell-known device called the .Geneva stop,the device as drawn being adapted to register nine hundred and ninetynine, By the addition of another spindle,

.wheels,and disk, thousands. may in like manner be indicated.

It is well known that a rapidly-revolving pivoted body, particularly when attached quite a distance from the axis of rotation, produces a tangential or centrifugal force, which serves to greatly retard, if not to wholly neutralize, the force 'ofgravity, which latter would readily act on slowly-revolving bodies.

, The gravity-acting principle is involved in my improved cyclometer when combined with a revolving wheel, the .device being practically operative when attached immediately adjacent to the hub of the bicycle-wheel, as shown in Fig. 1. In this position a fiftyfour-inch-diameter wheel even may revolve at the rate of a mile a minute and register accurately; but by simply'reversing the position of the cyclomet'erthat is to say, secur' ing it tothe wheel so that the pivot e is upper -most-then the circle. gyration is so large that the apparatus fails to register exce t at a comparatively slow rate of speed of the bicyda 7 It is obvious thatby a slight change in the attaching means a, &c., the cyelometer may be employed to .register the continuous revolutioris of shal"ting. It is also adapted to be used one vehicle-wheel as a counter or detector. It is further evident that any standard of measurement may be adopted, the graduations and gear-,trainbeing a simple matter of calculation. In its adaptation to diiferent sizes of bicycles, trieycles, and other similar traction-wheels; thegearltrain is changed according to the corresponding number of revolntions per mile required. r 60. .It is obviousthat minor changes may be i made in the construction of the device herein shown without departing from'the spirit of theinvention as, for example, the pivoted mechanism carrying cylinder D may consist of a back plate and the front plateor dial, D, the two beingsecured together by studs or screws, substantially the same as clock or watch plates aremounted. The attaching-lug 0 (one or more) may be secured immediately to the back of the case B and project sufii- 7o ciently therefrom to receive a'wheel-spoke, s. The glass-covered opening formedln the cap may be located in the exact center thereof,

-to present a more symmetrical appearance, if

desired; and, as hereinbefore stated, the size of the cyelometer may be greatly reducedin fact, to aboutone and three-fourths inch in diameter.. v

- Havi ngth'usdeseribed aminsenticn; r what I claim as new, and desire to secure by United States Patent, is--- Y r I .1. The improved cyclometer or speed-lndicator'hereinbefore described, consisting of a capped case, a pawl secured therein, a cylinderor framing .pivotally mounted wlthin the casenear its edge, carrying a gear-train and registering mechanism adapted to be operrated-by the oscillation ofthe said cylinder,

and means for attaching the cyclometer to a wheel or other revolving mechanism, snbstan- 9o t-ially as set forth, and for the purpose specified.

2. The combination, with a normally stationary case adapted to be attached to a bi cycle-wheel, and a pawl secured therein, of a frame pivotally mounted within the case near its edge, and reg'istering mechanism mounted in said frame, consisting of a ratchet-wheel, check-pawl, speed-reducing gear-train, and I intermittently actuated indicating-disks, all, arrangedand operati'ngsubstantiallyasshown, 0 and for the purpose hereinbefore set forth.

3. In acyclometer, the combination, with l the outer case'and the'registerin'g mechanism carrying cylin'der or plate pivotally-mou nted therein near its edge, of a ratchet wheel 5 mounted to revolve in saidcylinder, a checkpawl engaging the ratchet-wheel attached to der, and a pawl secured to the'interior of the case, adapted to engage a ratchet-wheel of the registering mechanism, substantially as shown and described. Y

5. The combination, with a bicycle-wheel, otthe improvedcyclometer A, hereinbefore 5 described, secured thereto, and having the pivot e of the'cyclometor and its vibrating mechanism mounted adjacent tn the hub of said wheel, substantially asshownfand forthe purposespecified. I 3 6. Thecombination of the case B, having a cap or front provided with a glass-covered opening, lining f, secured totheinterier of the casgthe registering mechanism carrying cylinderor frameD,pivotall y mounted at its lower ed ge to a pin secured to the adjacent side of the case, and oppositely-located buffers f, secured to the cylinder, substantially as shown and 5 described, and for the purpose hereinbefore set forth.

7. In a cyclometer, the combination, with the ratchet-wheel m and cheek-pawl n, mounted and adapted to vibrate in unison with the pivro otelly-mountcd registering mechanism carrying cylinder D, of the spring-pawl n, attached to the cyclometer-case, adapted to engage a new tooth of the said ratchet-wheel at each vibration of the said cylinder, substantially as 15 shown and hereinbefore described.

8. The combination, with the capped case B, having means for attaching it to a bicyclewheel, 8m, of the-mechanism carrying cylinder or frame D, eccentrically mounted within the case on a studor pivot secured to the lower 2c portion of the case near its edge, and a pawl adapted to engage a ratchet-wheel mounted in the said frame, whereby the oscillations of the frame produce an intermittent rotary move ment to the index-hand and indicatingflisks, 2 5 substantially as shown and hereinbefore described.

In testimony whereof i have afifixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WM. R. DUTEMPLE. 

